Students speak out against budget cuts

Students have been concerned at NEIU about how budget cuts may affect their tuition costs and the overall affordability of college. Freshman Kevin Brown, an organizer for the Responsible Budget Coalition (RBC), held a rally on April 7 at noon outside of the B-Building, near the Student Union. The rally brought light to the House Bill 174, which will increase the state income tax to ensure funding for higher education and other health and human services. "Illinois right now is in a $13 billion budget gap, so that's why I think legislation is important, not just for education, but for all services," Brown said.

HB174 would raise the income tax from where it is now, at three percent, to five percent. There is a $200 million gap for Illinois state universities and this bill would generate about $5 billion in new revenue, while expanding tax credits to lower and middle income families, so they receive some sort of relief.

"The RBC is made up of unions, labor groups, community organizations and service organizations, and they all decided to join together calling for responsible budgeting that funds vital services," Brown said. He knew a few people at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) who were involved, and RBC was helping them with the budget cuts UIC is facing. They are having similar budget cut issues because UIC is a state university like NEIU.

Brown was introduced to Patrick Keenan-Devlin, one of the organizers for RBC, and referred him to Ellen Larrimore, a faculty member of NEIU involved with RBC.

Although the NEIU group has only been active since this spring semester and has about a handful of people, they organized fairly rapidly to make sure this rally took place. They also extended invitations to local representatives.

For readers interested in more information, visit www.abetterillinois.com or contact Ellen Larrimore at 1-773-442-4402.